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RHEA COUNTY GOLDEN EAGLES
Head coach: Mark Pemberton (70-27 here; 231-97 overall)
Returning starters: 8 offensive; 6 defensive
Last season: 10-2, lost in 5A second round
Key players: Justin Woody (6-0, 265) Sr. OL/DL, Hunter Lemons (6-0, 269) Sr. OL/DL, Kaleb Martin (6-2, 170) So. QB/FS, Ethan Davis (5-10, 155) So. RB/DB, Jadden Pankey (5-10, 165) Sr. RB/CB, Drew Fisher (6-0, 215) Sr. TE/LB
Season outlook: Rhea County has potentially the toughest start to the season of any program in the TSSAA, with road trips to Alcoa and Elizabethton, the reigning state champions in 3A and 4A, respectively, out of the gate.
That’s why Pemberton expects to lean on a veteran offensive line with four starters returning from the group that paved the way for a unit that averaged 222.2 rushing yards in 2020. Martin is back to man the controls of the wing-T offense, while Davis, who finished 26 yards shy of 1,000 as a freshman, also returns in the backfield.
The defense will be led by Fisher, who had 120 tackles (14 for loss) and five sacks last season on his way to becoming an all-state selection, but Pankey was just as important with eight interceptions.
Pemberton will get his wish of having his team tested in the nonconference schedule; what the Golden Eagles make of it is up to them.
“If we can have success and get through it healthy, I think it’ll help us down the road,” the coach said. “When you play those good people, it exposes your weaknesses in a hurry.”
After facing Alcoa and Elizabethton, it’s on to the region opener against McMinn County, which is coming a 2020 season that ranks as one of the program’s best.
“You might go half a season and not find out what changes you need to make,” Pemberton said of a typical season, “but we’re going to find out early who can play in those type of ballgames, and who can we plug in if we need to or who we need to replace, so I think it will help us get the right people in place earlier than normal.”